Our next port was Cherbourg, France. From this port we took a full day excursion to Normandy. One of our main reasons for taking this cruise was to see Normandy, site of the D-day landings on the beaches of Normandy. We have seen movies about this historic event such as The Longest Day, Saving Private Ryan, Where Eagles Dare, Patton and Churchill.  Bill’s Uncle Jesse was a sailor on one of the ships that delivered soldiers to Omaha Beach.

Our excursion began at 7:00 A.M. It was dark, cold, windy and pouring rain when we left the ship to meet our bus. By the time we got on the bus our pant legs were wet.

Our first stop was at the small town of Sainte-Mere-Eglise where fortunately it was not raining. Before dawn on June 6th, American and British airborne divisions landed by parachute and glider behind enemy lines near the beaches. An American paratrooper by the name of John Steele, of the 82nd Airborne division, landed on the church steeple.  His parachute got snagged on the church steeple, leaving him hanging for two hours. He pretended he was dead, but German soldiers knew he was alive. They went to the steeple, cut the parachute cords, and dragged him inside through a window. He was kept as a prisoner until he escaped four hours later and rejoined the American troops when they invaded the small village, liberating the villagers from the Germans. He received the Medal of Valor and a Purple Heart. Years later he returned to visit the village and received a hero’s welcome. On the roof of the church today is a dummy replica of the paratrooper. His story is documented in the movie The Longest Day.

Bill and I went inside the church and walked around the small village square. We noticed many American flags displayed here and throughout Normandy. The French in this part of France have not forgotten what the Americans did for them in the liberation of France.

General Eisenhower

While paratroopers landed, Allied naval forces began an assault across the English Channel. At 6:30 A.M., six American, British and Canadian divisions began an assault on the five beaches named Utah, Omaha, Gold, Juno and Sword Beaches.

The American Allies fought at Utah and Omaha while the British and Canadians battled the Germans at the other three. Our bus stopped at Utah and then Omaha beaches. Here the Allies had to cross open areas while under gunfire from the Germans entrenched on the high cliffs above. As we visited Utah beach we saw where the American 101st Airborne Division paratroopers fought several days until reinforcements arrived. The Germans had reinforcement protection on two of their guns seen here.

German Barracks

The lookout on the cliff was used to direct the guns.

As you can see here the cliffs are high and bomb blast holes are everywhere.

Omaha Beach was the site where the  highest Allied casualties occurred and it is referred to as “Bloody Omaha”. The Allies eventually secured the area but at a significant cost in casualties. We spent some time at Omaha Beach. We gathered at the plaza where our guide talked for some time about the fighting that occurred here. It wasn’t raining but it was very cold and windy.

National Guard Memorial

German Machine Gun Post (lower right)

Bill’s 94 year old scout leader asked Bill to bring him back some sand from Omaha Beach. We had some free time and Bill walked down to the beach and gathered some sand in a couple baggies to take home. I couldn’t manage the steps so I stayed on the plaza and took pictures. This time of year is out of season so all the restaurants and shops were closed.

We passed the site of the “first US cemetery”. It was quickly removed to another location because it was not psychologically good for soldiers to come ashore and immediately see a graveyard.

One of the Many Museums

We then continued on to the Normandy American Cemetery and Memorial where 9,400 Americans are buried.

Two American flags solemnly flew at half mast. Approximately 29,000 Americans died during the Normandy campaign with 2,500 dying on D-Day. Approximately 135,000 Americans were killed, wounded or missing.

The families of the deceased were given the option of having the deceased flown home for burial or being buried at Normandy. Sixty percent chose to have their loved ones returned home and forty percent chose burial in Normandy. The soldiers were buried facing west toward home.

There were 45 sets of brothers buried side by side and one father and son buried together. Four women are buried at the Normandy cemetery they had died in a jeep accident delivering mail. In the cemetery are white marble crosses and Stars of David.

By the walkway was this time capsule to be open in June 6, 2044.

We boarded the bus for the trip back to the port. It was a long eight hour day where we had occasional rain and it was bitter cold and windy. There was lots of walking over uneven surfaces which was very hard for me. That evening Bill started coming down with a bad cold and cough that plagued him the rest of the cruise. I woke up about 3:00 the next morning and felt like every muscle in my body hurt and I could hardly move. But in spite of this, we are so very glad we had the opportunity to see this historic place where so many Americans sacrificed their lives for freedom. We feel honored to have been able to visit.

Next up: Vigo, Spain
Interesting fact the British named the beaches after fish goldfish, jelly fish and sword fish. Churchill changed the jelly to juno.